This is an incredibly heart-wrenching memoir - it's definitely not for the faint of heart. I gave myself about a week after reading it to process the story before writing a review.

Ruth's life was...insanely bad. Almost unbelievably bad, for that matter. Her mother is essentially brainwashed by a polygamist cult, and her stepfather is as bad as can be imagined. He has several other wives (that he beats), and around 40 children (many of which he is sexually abusing).

Between watching and experiencing severe abuse, being manipulated and gaslit by her family and community, and having to protect her siblings from horrific neglect, Ruth managed to get through it all. Her strength, as well as the strength of her brothers and sisters, is incredibly inspiring. I won't add any spoilers in the review, but by the end, I was so incredibly frustrated and sad for her and her family. Definitely worth a read though, if you can handle the dark material.

*Trigger warnings: sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, death.